Cherundolo to undergo another knee surgery

By Avi Creditor

The veteran U.S. and Hannover right back suffered an injury setback in training and will need another procedure for his left knee.

Veteran U.S. right back Steve Cherundolo will need to undergo arthroscopic knee surgery on Friday after experiencing an injury setback in training, his club, Hannover 96, announced on its official website on Thursday.

The surgery will be the second one of its kind this year for the 34-year-old Cherundolo, who also went under the knife for an arthroscopic procedure for the same left knee in February. That surgery forced him to miss the USA's World Cup qualifier against Honduras, and he missed the ensuing two months before returning in April.

Cherundolo, who has 87 international caps, also was not included for the USA's roster for friendlies against Belgium and Germany and qualifiers against Jamaica, Panama and Honduras in May and June. U.S. manager Jurgen Klinsmann said he had asked to be left behind with his club in order to regain 100 percent fitness, which he had not achieved heading into the start of the new Bundesliga season and the fall World Cup qualifying matches despite returning to Hannover's setup.

There was no injury timetable given by Hannover, but an equivalent layoff to his last surgery would put Cherundolo's comeback around the time of the Sept. 6 and 10 qualifiers in Costa Rica and at home against Mexico in Columbus, respectively.

Cherundolo, nicknamed "The Mayor of Hannover," signed a one-year contract extension to remain with the club for which he is the captain through the 2013-14 season. Hannover is the only club for which Cherundolo has played, having joined the German side in 1999.